ANAHEIM — Shortstop Zach Neto’s recent slump led to a day out of the lineup.
Neto, who has consistently been the Angels best player this season, was out of the lineup on Sunday for the first time since June 29. The break two months ago was because he was dealing with a sore right shoulder.
Neto is now healthy, but he came into Sunday with three hits and 14 strikeouts in his last 34 at-bats.
“You get to that point where you start to chase results more than process,” interim manager Ray Montgomery said. “And maybe you’re swinging at stuff, and your decision making changes. The quality of the at-bat might go down a little bit. So sometimes you just need to step away and watch it for a minute to be able to regroup.”
Montgomery acknowledged that Neto was not happy about the break, and he said that’s to be expected.
Montgomery chatted with Neto for a few minutes in the dugout on Sunday morning, and related to him that he thinks Neto has done a better job this year of “managing” his consistency.
“His lows have been less low and his highs have been controlled a little bit,” Montgomery said. “He’s really maturing into the type of player we’re watching every day. I think he’s doing a good job of that. He knows October is the goal. Not September.”
Neto, 24, is hitting .257 with 25 homers, 24 stolen bases and a .792 OPS. He has a chance of reaching 30-30, which has only been achieved by a shortstop seven times in big league history.
“He’s still so young,” Montgomery said. “What I don’t think he may realize is he’s only coming into what going to be his prime. He’s still on the front end of that. So that’s exciting.”
SCHANUEL UPDATE
First baseman Nolan Schanuel tried to take batting practice against a coach this weekend and it didn’t go as well as he’d hoped, so he’s taken a step back. Schanuel is continuing to do defensive drills.
Schanuel has been out for two weeks with a bone bruise in his left wrist.
“He’s probably a little frustrated that it’s not healing as quickly as he wants,” Montgomery said. “He’s gonna back up a little bit today, maybe just do some inside stuff, soft toss, and see how it feels. Bone bruises are hard because you just don’t know. When you add to the fact of where it is, obviously makes it hard when you’re talking about a guy who is his caliber of hitter.”
NOTES
The Angels called up left-hander Sammy Peralta to provide some coverage for the bullpen, which has had to pick up after short starts from José Soriano and Yusei Kikuchi each of the previous two days. Peralta, 27, appeared in 27 games over the previous two years with the Chicago White Sox. This season he’s pitched as a starter and a reliever at Triple-A Salt Lake, including starts in his previous two games. The Angels optioned right-hander Chase Silseth to open a spot for Peralta on the 26-man roster, and they designated infielder Chad Stevens for assignment to clear a 40-man roster spot. …
Torii Hunter, an Angels special assistant, has been in uniform for this homestand.
UP NEXT
Twins (RHP Simeon Woods Richardson, 5-4, 4.53) at Angels (RHP Caden Dana, 0-0, 4.91), Monday, 6:38 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network West, 830 AM